The Desert Cafe, in Baltimore’s Mount Washington Village, has had some tough years with business, hit hard by the economy, competition and a lack of nearby parking. But owner Blake Wollman is also the proprietor of The Wild Pea Hummous, which has only managed to grow in that time. The photos here show the cafe – empty at lunch time on a recent Friday – and the bustling office space where Wollman and his team make and package all of their hummus varieties.

Holiday train gardens are a tradition for many local fire stations, including the Baltimore City fire house on Glen Avenue in Mount Washington. The Shops at Kenilworth in Towson also has an elaborate garden around its fountain.

Instagram has become one of the most popular ways for people to share their photos online. With more than 50 million users, it is also one of the most popular social networks. Since I started using Instagram last fall, I have taken many photos using the app in and around the city of Baltimore. I tried to use different filters and combinations of light adjustment and the blurring feature to make the pictures I take unique.